As an SR&ED tax credit specialist, people often ask me “To which extent can we go back in the past?” When a corporation has filled and submitted its income tax return (provincial and federal), it has 18 months after its fiscal year to modify its income tax return and make an SR&ED tax credit claim. Multiple reasons can lead to the modification of the income tax return, and, for that reason, both government levels have made available for the individuals, forms rendering the submission of a new income tax return useless. The provincial government puts forward the form “Request for an Adjustment to a Corporation Income Tax Return or to an Information and Income Tax Return for Non-Profit Corporations” CO-17.R. It permits to indicate the lines requiring a modification in the income tax return. As this claim is linked to the SR&ED tax credit, it must be accompanied by forms explaining those modifications:

• Tax Credit for Salaries and Wages (R&D) (RD-1029.7);
• Agreement Between Associated Corporations Regarding the Expenditure Limit (RD-1029.7.8);
• Deduction Respecting Scientific Research and Experimental Development Expenditures (RD-222).

At the federal level, that type of specific form does not exist, and the procedure is not called adjustment request (or new tax assessment). A letter explaining approximately the points taken up by the provincial forms must be written and sent to the CRA. This letter must be accompanied by the following forms:

• Schedule 31 – Investment Tax Credit – Corporations.
• Schedule 32 – T661 – SR&ED Expenditures Claim.
• Schedule 60 – T661 – Part 2 – Project Information.

The possibility to go back for the corporations doing SR&ED work is a highly interesting opportunity because the 18 months term begins from the last day of their fiscal year. A corporation can, therefore, return up to 30 months back to claim incurred expenditures. However, I must stress that the validity of that reprieve is on only if the taxation year had 12 months.